Parliament approves establishment of new office

Parliament approved late Monday the establishment of the Office of Public Procurement and the Defense of the Public Interest.

MPs voted with 179 ayes, 163 nays and four abstentions to set up the office.

The independent office, the successor of the Public Procurement Council, will make proposals to keep budget-funded institutions from damaging the public interest and it will cooperate on drawing up and implementing the government's anti-corruption strategy. It will also prepare and submit annual reports to Parliament on the subject.

The office will be made up of four parts: the Public Procurement Arbitration Board (KDB), the Public Interest Protection Directorate, the Public Procurement Directorate and the secretariat.

The chairman of the office will be nominated jointly by the President and the Prime Minister and will be elected by Parliament with a mandate of six years.

The law establishing the office will come into force from the beginning of 2010. (MTI-Econews)

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